By Rachaell Davis, essence.com
The 14-year-old Ohio girl who allegedly fired the fatal shot that killed her father won’t be tried as an adult, despite earlier reports.
Bresha Meadows will face charges in juvenile court for the July 28 shooting, which claimed the life of her father Johnathan. The teen’s family members have maintained that she was subjected to witnessing her father physically abuse her mother for years before the incident.
Had the middle school student been tried as an adult, she faced the possibility of being sentenced to life in prison.
Should Bresha be convinced of the aggravated murder charge she faces in juvenile court, the longest she can be held is until her 21st birthday. Any time served will take place in a juvenile facility, rather than an adult prison.
Cleveland police officer Martina Latessa, who is also Bresha’s aunt, says the family and the teen’s mother was relieved to hear the news.
“She is a little girl and this was weighing heavy so I feel like today a thousand pounds has lifted off her shoulders, her mom’s shoulders, the family’s shoulders and everybody’s shoulders that she will have a future,” Latessa told WFMJ News. “She will have a tomorrow.”
The next hearing in the case is scheduled for January 20, 2017.
